Sports
Osimhen, Chukwueze’s Progression Delights Amuneke
Emmanuel Amuneke has voiced his gladness seeing Villarreal’s Samuel Chukwueze and Lille’s Victor Osimhen become ‘household names’ for Nigeria and their respective European clubs.
Both players contributed a great deal as Nigeria U17 won the 2015 FIFA World Cup staged in Chile.
While Osimhen won the Golden Boot and Silver Ball, Chukwueze walked away with the Bronze Boot.
Since then, the youngsters have been key figures for their European teams as well as the country’s senior national team, helping them place third at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.
For the 1994 African Player of the Year, who was their coach at National U17 and U20 levels, credit for their meteoric rise should be given to the coaches who discovered them, while hoping Nigeria builds on this to groom more superstars in future.
“Football is like a school where you progress from the primary school down to the tertiary institution. Even after that, you continue to educate yourself,” Amuneke told newsmen.
He said: “Playing in the youth team is an opportunity for a young player who is dreaming big to become a professional. Helping your team win the World Cup at youth level means you have something special as a player
“It depends on capacity, abilities and mentality to continue to progress as a footballer, so seeing (Samuel) Chukwueze and (Victor) Osimhen progressing gives me joy.
“These are players we all picked without anybody knowing anything about them. We saw the qualities they possessed and tries to guide them to develop.”
“They have answered some of the questions asked during the 2015 U17 World Cup in Chile, on why African players after doing well in a cadet tournament fail to progress,” he continued.
“Seeing them becoming household names for their clubs and the Super Eagles in their early 20s is a very good thing and it means that those people who have worked hard in the U17 category since 2013 have done a good job and have set a pace,” he said.
“It’s up to us to be able to build on that and see how our players can transform from the youth level to the senior level towards becoming better players in future.”
Before European football leagues went on a hiatus owing to the Covid-19 outbreak, Osimhen contributed 13 goals in 27 French top-flight appearances this term.
For Chukwueze, in 26 Spanish elite division outings, he has found the net thrice as the Yellow Submarine stay eighth on the La Liga log.
Nigeria has won the bid to host the next edition of the prestigious All Africa Challenge Trophy in 2026.
The AACT is a biennial continental ladies’ golf championship in Africa that had its inaugural edition in May 1992 in Zimbabwe.
Nigeria hosted the AACT in 1996 at the Ikoyi Club 1938, while in 2010, the AACT was played at the IBB International Golf and Country Club, in Abuja.
This would be the third time Nigeria will be hosting the championship.
Interestingly, the West and Central Africa Challenge Trophy (a regional version of the championship) was held for the first time in Nigeria at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Estates and Resort, Lagos, in 2023.
Evelyn Oyome, the President of the Ladies Golf Association of Nigeria, who was the leader of the Nigerian delegation to the championship’s 16th edition in Morocco, said Nigeria emerged winner amongst the 20 countries that took part in the bidding process.
“Nigeria had earlier hosted the West, Central Africa Challenge Trophy in October last year at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Estate and Resort in Lagos, showcasing its outstanding golfing facilities, with no fewer than 10 countries participating.
“So, hosting that championship successfully last year gave us the edge amongst so many other countries that also bidded and winning was a huge victory for Nigeria,” she said.
Oyome revealed that the Federal Capital Territory would be the host city for the AACT 2026 edition, with no fewer than 30 countries expected to participate in the championship.
Super Eagles B co-handler Fidelis Ilechukwu has revealed that Kano Pillars duo Ahmed Musa and Shehu Abdullahi were initially listed in the 30-man squad for the 2024 CHAN qualifiers double header clash against Ghana, but were dropped over their ineligibility.
Musa and Shehu, who made sensational returns to Kano Pillars this season, were conspicuously missing when the Nigeria Football Federation revealed the names of 30 Nigeria Premier Football League stars for the assignment.
The CHAN Eagles are currently camping in Ikenne, Ogun State. They will play the first leg of their encounter in Accra on Sunday, December 22 before returning to Uyo for the return leg on Saturday, December 28.
“I was told he (Musa) didn’t meet up with the conditions of playing in the CHAN tournament or qualifiers,” Ilechukwu told our correspondent.
“Ahmed Musa was on our list, there is no way we wouldn’t have included him in the list with his performances in the league but they told us to replace him due to eligibility.
When asked if the same applied to Shehu, the coach replied in the affirmative.
According to CAF regulations, only footballers playing in their country of birth are eligible.
While the above rule favours both Musa and Shehu, their participation was perhaps made difficult by another CAF regulation which says, “Only players with a permanent contract registered in a local club affiliated to their national association are eligible to participate in the African Nations Championship” – as both players are in the NPFL under the Elite Player Scheme.
According to section 9.91 of the NPFL Framework and Rules, “There shall be an Elite Player Scheme wherein each Club shall be allowed to register a maximum of two players who in the opinion of the NPFL will add value to the league.”
The Federal Capital Territory is set to host the 2024 Annual General Assembly (AGA) of the Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) on Tuesday, December 17, 2024.
In a statement released yesterday, the Chief Operating Officer, Modupe Shabi, confirmed that all arrangements have been finalised for the AGA, which will take place at Fabino by Toprank Hotels, Abuja.
The AGA meeting promises to be a significant gathering in charting a way forward for the women’s football rising agenda and the women’s football leagues in Nigeria.
Key stakeholders, including board members and representatives of Premiership and Championship clubs, will review the successes and challenges of the outgone 2023/2024 season.
Notably, Edo Queens emerged champions of the NWFL Premiership for the first time, while Honey Badgers and Ibom Angels secured promotion to the Premiership from the NWFL Championship.
The AGM will also focus on sustaining the league’s growing credibility and improving operations while setting the calendar and start date for the 2024/2025 NWFL Premiership and Championship campaigns.
This pivotal meeting aims to further strengthen women’s football in Nigeria and lay the groundwork for the league’s continued growth.
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